Feather firefly

Feather firefly
Phengodes
Systematics
Class : Insects (Insecta) Order : Beetle (Coleoptera) Subordination : Polyphaga Partial order : Elateriformia Superfamily : Elateroidea Family : Feather firefly
Scientific name
Phengodidae
LeConte , 1861

Feather firefly ( Phengodes plumosa  ?)

The feather fireflies (Phengodidae) are a family of the beetles (Coleoptera).

features

The feather fireflies are closely related to the fireflies and, like them, usually also have luminous organs . The females are wingless and larva-like in shape, their luminous organs, like those of the larvae, are arranged as rows on the sides of the abdomen and emit yellow or green light. Sometimes there is also a luminous organ on the head that emits a rather unusual light color with red light.

The males are smaller than the females, are winged, and have feathery antennae, hence the German name of the family. They are able to actively seek out the females, from whom they are attracted by pheromones and light signals. Often the short-lived males, who presumably do not eat any food, fly to artificial light sources. In some species the males also have luminous organs.

Way of life

The larvae live in the litter and feed predatory on various arthropods, apparently preferring bipedes .

Systematics

There are around 170 species of this family worldwide, most of them in tropical America, the range extends from southern Canada to Chile . Some species are also found in Africa .

Genera

• Acladocera
• Adendrocera
• Brasilocerus
• Cenophengus
• Cephalophrixothorax
• Decamastinocerus
• Distremocephalus
• Eurymastinocerus
• Euryognathus
• Euryopa
• Howdenia
• Mastinocerus
• Mastinomorphus
• Mastinovittmerus
• Microphengodes
• Neophengus
• Nephromma
• Oxymastinocerus
• Paramastinocerus
• Paraptorthodius
• Penicillophorus
• Phengodes
• Phrixothrix
• Pseudomastinocerus
• Pseudophengodes
• Ptorthodiellus
• Ptorthodius
• Spangleriella
• Steneuryopa
• Stenocladius
• Stenophrixothrix
• Taximastinocerus
• Zarhipis

literature

• Sean T. O'Keefe: Phengodidae. in Ross H. Arnett, and Michael C. Thomas, American Beetles. Volume 2: Polyphaga, CRC Press 2002, ISBN 0-8493-0954-9

Web links

• Phengodidae in delta-intkey.com/elateria JF Lawrence, AM Hastings, MJ Dallwitz, TA Paine and EJ Zurcher. Elateriformia (Coleoptera): descriptions, illustrations, identification, and information retrieval for families and sub-families (English)